August Book of the Month Picks

Alright you guys, are you ready to be amazed? Good, because I actually read two out of three of my Book of the Month Picks! You heard that right! I’m killing it!

With August starting I knew I was very behind on my reading goal, so I vowed to do better. I also have a huge backlist of Book of the Month books and so I also made a commitment to getting some of those read. I ended up reading 5 Book of the Month books in August, which two of them being from my August Selections.

Book of the Month August 2019 Selections

Dominicana by Angie Cruz
Fiction – Literary (Release Date: September 3, 2019)
336 Pages
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.35

Fifteen-year-old Ana Cancion never dreamed of moving to America, the way the girls she grew up with in the Dominican countryside did. But when Juan Ruiz proposes and promises to take her to New York City, she has to say yes. It doesn’t matter that he is twice her age, that there is no love between them. Their marriage is an opportunity for her entire close-knit family to eventually immigrate. So on New Year’s Day, 1965, Ana leaves behind everything she knows and becomes Ana Ruiz, a wife confined to a cold six-floor walk-up in Washington Heights. Lonely and miserable, Ana hatches a reckless plan to escape. But at the bus terminal, she is stopped by Cesar, Juan’s free-spirited younger brother, who convinces her to stay.

As the Dominican Republic slides into political turmoil, Juan returns to protect his family’s assets, leaving Cesar to take care of Ana. Suddenly, Ana is free to take English lessons at a local church, lie on the beach at Coney Island, see a movie at Radio City Music Hall, go dancing with Cesar, and imagine the possibility of a different kind of life in America. When Juan returns, Ana must decide once again between her heart and her duty to her family.

The Whisper Man by Alex North
Mystery / Thriller (Release Date: August 20, 2019)
368 Pages
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.30

In this dark, suspenseful thriller, Alex North weaves a multi-generational tale of a father and son caught in the crosshairs of an investigation to catch a serial killer preying on a small town.

Well Met by Jen DeLuca
Fiction – Rom-Com (Release Date: September 3, 2019)
336 Pages
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.25

Emily knew there would be strings attached when she relocated to the small town of Willow Creek, Maryland, for the summer to help her sister recover from an accident, but who could anticipate getting roped into volunteering for the local Renaissance Faire alongside her teenaged niece? […]

The faire is Simon’s family legacy and from the start he makes clear he doesn’t have time for Emily’s lighthearted approach to life, her oddball Shakespeare conspiracy theories, or her endless suggestions for new acts to shake things up. Yet on the faire grounds he becomes a different person, flirting freely with Emily when she’s in her revealing wench’s costume. But is this attraction real, or just part of the characters they’re portraying?

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware
Fiction – Mystery / Thriller (Release Date: September 5, 2019)
384 Pages
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.02

When she stumbles across the ad, she’s looking for something else completely. But it seems like too good an opportunity to miss—a live-in nannying post, with a staggeringly generous salary. And when Rowan Caine arrives at Heatherbrae House, she is smitten—by the luxurious “smart” home fitted out with all modern conveniences, by the beautiful Scottish Highlands, and by this picture-perfect family.

What she doesn’t know is that she’s stepping into a nightmare—one that will end with a child dead and herself in prison awaiting trial for murder.

The Reckless Oath We Made by Bryn Greenwood
Fiction – Literary (Release Date: August 20, 2019)
448 Pages
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.22

Zee is nobody’s fairy tale princess. Almost six-foot, with a redhead’s temper and a shattered hip, she has a long list of worries: never-ending bills, her beautiful, gullible sister, her five-year-old nephew, her housebound mother, and her drug-dealing boss.

Zee may not be a princess, but Gentry is an actual knight, complete with sword, armor, and a code of honor. Two years ago the voices he hears called him to be Zee’s champion. Both shy and autistic, he’s barely spoken to her since, but he has kept watch, ready to come to her aid.

When an abduction tears Zee’s family apart, she turns to the last person she ever imagined–Gentry–and sets in motion a chain of events that will not only change both of their lives, but bind them to one another forever.

My Picks

There were 5 really great picks this month but I ended up choosing The Reckless Oath We Made, The Whisper Man, & The Turn of the Key. I’ve always been a fairly been fan of Ruth Ware books so The Turn of the Key was a no brainer. I had previously read an excerpt from The Whisper Man and knew I needed this book. Lastly, The Reckless Oath We Made sounded interesting to me and so I went ahead and added that to my box as well, however it’s the only one I didn’t get to in August.

Between The Whisper Man & The Turn of the Key, The Turn of the Key was my favorite. I gave it a 5 star review which you can see HERE. I really enjoyed The Whisper Man, it read like a good true crime novel and had alot of really great intercepting story lines. I think I overhyped the book though because the creep factor everyone was raving about didn’t do anything for me. It was a great written book and I still gave it 4 stars but I was a little let down. You can see my full review for The Whisper Man HERE!

What did you pick for your August Box?

WHAT IS BOOK OF THE MONTH?

For those who haven’t heard of Book of the Month club or BOTM, it is a subscription program, similar to audible or other box subscription services, where you get (you guessed it) a new book every month. Each month members are given 5 different books to choose from. BOTM generally focusing on debut and emerging writers, and is known for having helped launch the careers of some of the most acclaimed authors in American literary history. In an attempt to read more books outside my favorite genres without having to siphon through all the duds, I decided to sign up for the monthly subscriptions. It costs me $14.99 per month, I choose 1 of the 5 books on the first of every month, and it’s delivered straight to my door. You can skip any month or roll your credits over to the next month, at any time. Since I started getting BOTM in 2018, I’ve really enjoyed some of the new authors I’ve been exposed to. If you’re interested in joining BOTM, I’ve added my referral code to the bottom of this post, which if you use, you’ll be able to get your first month (book) free!